Please.

The most exciting and interesting part of a fairly boring and predictable game between Panama and Puerto Rico was the performance by former Tiger Ivan Rodriguez (*sniff*). This man, who’s headed to the Hall of Fame five years to the day after he retires, is unemployed. Not because he was swinging around a team’s front office by their nose hairs or because he’s the subject of a federal indictment, but simply because everyone seems to have forgotten about him. After tonight, I think that they’ll remember.

Because Pudgy wants a job.

He went 4-for-4 with a walk, scored three times, and hit two home runs. That means that 5 of the 7 runs that Puerto Rico scored are because Pudge hit the ball. Oh, and he stole a base (how old is this guy?). Oh, and he also caught a shut-out in the middle of all that running. Why isn’t this man signed?

I haven’t been able to figure out why he didn’t have a job even before the WBC started. I mean, we’re not talking about a hack here. Yes, he’s getting old. Yes, his offensive numbers stunk last year after his trade to New York. But he was hitting .295 before the trade and even if you add in the stinky numbers he hit .276 on the year. You could do a lot worse, considering you’re also getting one of the best, if not the best, defensive catcher whose ever worn a glove. Somebody sign him, please. I’ll admit, it hurts a little to see Pudge in any uniform without a D on it, but I can’t stand the thought of he being forced to retire because he can’t get a job. I think any fan of baseball will agree, Pudge should be able to decide when to end his illustrious career.

On another note, the game between Candada and the US was niether boring nor predictable. It was a great game. And we won. So, I’m a happy Yank.